Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - To Fix or Not to Fix....

hey all. i'm looking for some advice or opinions. i have an older (circa mid-90's probably) Specialized Hard Rock frame that i'm thinking about turning into a fixed or SS machine. i know with vertical drop outs going fixed would be difficult but i like a challenge. SS would definitely be easier and cheaper but i like riding fixed and SS and just want some other people's input on how similar builds have gone and possibly what parts and equipment everyone has used to get either Fixed or SS builds done.

thanx

i've thought about this in the past a little bit.. luckily i found a friend who welds and can put in horizontal drops on many road frames....
but anyways.. this sounds like a fun experiment, as chain tension is your major concern, adjust your chain length and see how close you come to high tension, and then to tune it even more change your cog/chainwheel sizes, lol.. you might have to ride gearing you normally wouldn't pick, but it JUST MIGHT WORK :D if i had the extra time and money i'd like to try such an experiment.

check this out

http://www.peak.org/~fixin/personal/fmu/php/formfmu.php

it's amazing. let us know if it works.

What kind of riding will you do on it? Fixed off-road can be a real challenge.

i mostly ride around town. maybe a few trails here and there. not too many real trails around here. nothing too majorly difficult

Then fixed is fine for you. Build and enjoy.

any other Fixed Faithful out there care to add to this?

Do both! Get a rear wheel (or build one) with a flip-flop hub.

If you've got vertical dropouts, you're going to want an ENO hub or an eccentric bottom bracket to run a fixed wheel. If you're content with freewheeling, you can use a purpose-built tensioner or just use an old rear derailleur to take up your chain slack.

good thinking. thats one of those "so simple i should have thought of that" things. is ENO the only company that makes an eccentric flip-flop rear hub? they certainly don't just give those things away. i think thats the only way that i could do both and get the chain tension right. unless someone has any suggestions. i'm always looking for cheaper fixes to problems(no pun intended)

i want to try SS mountain biking, infact daily i look up images of Redline monocog setups and drool profusely.